


hit me with your best shot

by athellos



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Don't copy to another site, F/F, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Love Confessions, M/M, Secret Santa, Wedding, cupid!lance, love spirit lance!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-21
Updated: 2019-03-21
Packaged: 2019-11-27 09:26:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18192776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/athellos/pseuds/athellos
Summary: “Why did you have to shoot a second time?”The question disconcerts him a bit, since he didn’t think that was what Keith would ask next. “What?”“Did you miss your shot the first time?” And Keith isn’t teasing, he’s just genuinely curious.But Lance is Lance and his skills will not be doubted. “For your information,” he raises his eyebrows, “I’m an excellent shot, thank you very much. I’m the best sharpshooter this world has ever seen.”“I forgot who I was talking to.” Keith chuckles, the little smile he wears makes Lance’s heart jump around his ribcage. “So, what happened then,sharpshooter?”------------------where lance is a cupid and attends a wedding





	hit me with your best shot

**Author's Note:**

  * For [shootsharpest](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shootsharpest/gifts).



> hewwo!!! this is a secret santa gift for my friend bai (@shootsharpest on twitter)  
> bai: hope u enjoy this, sorry this is so late (xmas was like 3 months ago gOD) and ILYSM UWU!!!!
> 
> for the rest of u: hope u enjoy it too!!! also keep an eye for the second couple lance shoots, its a very special pair and i want u guys to guess who they are
> 
> also a BIG BIG BIG thank you to kristine (@kanoncity in twitter) who betaed and edited this fic! love ya lots, kris

As loud and obnoxious as everyone thinks he is, Lance is very good at keeping secrets. Or one in particular, at least. 

As tradition goes, he got his bow when he was fifteen. The gift has passed on from generation to generation throughout history. Lance doesn't even know how his ancestor, the first cupid, got it. All he knows is that for as long as he can remember, he’s known it has to stay a secret. Why? Well, you can't have the general public know love spirits are real! There would be all kinds of misconceptions and people would panic.

His twin Rachel has always asked Lance if he thinks of it as a burden: having to watch again and again as people fall in love around him, never being able to avoid the call, that burning sensation inside of his wrist that pulls him to materialize his bow and aim.

Lance doesn't understand why anyone would hate this.

It's an amazing job, and Lance will say so till the day he dies, even when he'd give his arrow to a successor way before that happens.

And as he sits down and waits for his friends to walk down the altar, he's never felt more proud of himself.

 

He remembers the start of sophomore year...

He'd been walking back from the last class of that day with his two best friends by his side. Then, suddenly, he felt it.

He excused himself from Hunk and Pidge and started following the pull, wherever it took him.

He moved through the campus and tried to spot the lucky soul. 

He knew. The moment his eyes landed on Adam, although he didn't know his name back then, he knew it was him.

He kept a safe distance and ducked behind a tree when he saw the opportunity. It was almost completely dark outside and most people were rushing back to their dorms. He wasn't too worried about anyone seeing him: he'd been doing this dance for years now, and his bow always gives him enough cover as it is.

He watched the scene unfold. That’s his favorite part. It was the one aspect of the job he could never predict. Of course, he knows how it ends, but the thrill of watching two people met, or suddenly look up at their friend and see them differently, the moment when he breathes and just knows when he's got to aim his shot, and who the arrow is for. That's what gives him a rush of adrenaline he can't control.

So sue him, he's a hopeless romantic. He will always be.

He summoned his bow from thin air and waited. Adam was simply walking down the pavement, going back to his dorm. He walked past a row of frat houses, one of which was probably getting ready for a party. A car pulled up a few meters ahead of him, and from it, four people came out. 

Lance had shot Nyma only last semester and had since seen her walk hand in hand with her girlfriend. Rolo, he knew through Nyma, who once introduced them to one another at a party. The other two people that came out of the car were complete strangers to him; both Asian, one taller and more muscular, the other shorter and leaner, but definitely well-built. Lance would have given the guy a huge once-over if it wasn't for the fact that he was trying to decipher who he was he supposed to shoot. 

He focused on Nyma and tried for the sting in the inside of his wrist, where his little birthmark is, but nothing. He was glad it wasn't her. He had to shoot people he'd already shot a couple times and it often ended up messy (except, maybe, from the few poly relationships that had blossomed from it). Then he tried Rolo, yet his wrist stayed the same. He tried with the cute guy next and left out a relieved sigh when it wasn't him. He actually... didn’t have a good explanation for why he felt relieved. The guy was cute, okay? Is it bad to be kind of selfish sometimes?

And then. Bingo.

Tall-and-handsome got out of the driver seat while teasing cute-guy, for the looks of it. They all go to the car's trunk and start pulling out boxes of stuff and what looks like party-sized nacho bags. 

"Shiro, for the love of God!" shouted cute-guy, exasperated, while Tall-and-handsome, now appropriately named Shiro, snickered.

Adam was still walking, not paying them any mind. Lance crouched on the ground, ready to act the moment he felt it.

And in a second, he knew. Shiro looked up and saw him walking towards them. And it was that simple moment, that millisecond in which Lance beamed because he knew exactly how it was supposed to play out. He practically sensed what went through Shiro's mind right that moment.

An arrow materialized instantly in his hand, and he aimed. It doesn't take him much; he prides in how perfect his aim is. He breathed in and out and the arrow flew its way through the distance between him and Shiro.

And boom.

Shiro's eyes, his whole expression, changed.

And Lance's job for the night was done.

Lance never stayed for long after shooting; he thinks the couple should be able to go about this new thing happening in their lives without a love-spirit creeping up on them. Also, the moment he shoots an arrow, he's visible to the world again, and he can't risk getting caught.

So, after he left that night, Shiro and Adam were to their own devices.

Lance is just a helper. Love happens around him all the time without his intervention and always has. But sometimes, the universe deems two people need a push. That’s the instant were Lance and his kind come into the picture; the arrows he shoots only ignite the initial spark, and the rest is up to the people involved. He's shot so many arrows at parties that ended up just being one-night stands; he never enjoys it too much when he's sure they won't last. When it does, though, it feels like it’s a job well-done.

However, he would have never guessed that he would end up here, at their wedding. Life is funny like that, he guesses.

He befriended cute-guy -whose name turned out to be Keith- not long after, since they were assigned a group project together and bonded over their hatred for Professor Sendak.

Keith and he had a rocky start to their friendship, he must admit. They butted heads about almost everything cause they never understood each other: Lance's whole persona had always worked as a way to mask away insecurities and feelings he never wanted to show, and Keith seemed to be the most emotionally constipated person Lance had ever met.

Yet somehow it worked.

And it worked so well, once they tried to actually communicate, once they opened up, that it was almost inevitable that they became a vital part of each other's life; and so would happen that Keith would meet Hunk and Pidge, and that Keith would introduce him to his brother, his brother's boyfriend, and Allura and Romelle.

Thus they all became friends, and thus they all find themselves standing up as Adam and Shiro walk into the venue from opposite sides of the room, and thus Lance holds Romelle's hand against his chest and tries not to cry, while Allura gives him a teasing look - although it's not convincing. Her eyes look just as wet.

He looks over to the altar where Keith is waiting by the side for the couple to arrive. Adam wanted his sister to be maid of honor, and she stands opposite to Keith, with the biggest smile Lance has ever seen her make.

However, he looks at Keith, and for some fucking reason, that damn marking in the inside of his wrists tingles.

Recently, any glance at or any closeness in proximity with Keith causes his wrist to tingle. And it hasn’t ever done this before. This tingle is not a call; it’s not pulling him in any direction; it’s not making his fingers itch with the feeling of his bow to materialize.

It's just a tiny heat, that pulses right along with his heartbeat and makes itself known in the sinking feeling of his chest and the fucking butterflies in his stomach.

And it's been years, but Keith is still the same cute guy he doesn't fucking know why he ever wished he'd never have to shoot, but also it's been years and he's got to know his scowl, and the dork behind it. He knows him: his smile, his passions, his scars, his tears, his hands, that little dimple that he tries to hide and that Lance has come to know so well. 

Lance has never been good with feelings. He's in love with love, he's always been. But he's always assumed it just... wasn't for him. He always felt like he's just meant to help and look from the outside. And time and time again, whenever he thought he felt it, it just wasn't right: the right moment, the right person, the right him.

However, now everything feels like it’s falling into place along with him. 'Cause he falls, and falls, and whenever he thinks there's no way he can fall harder, he does. And it's so overwhelming he drowns in it, he doesn't know what to do.

And at the same time, it felt like the most natural thing in the world, like he was always meant to fall for Keith.

God, he feels cheesy waxing this poetic shit about him. But his heart beats faster when Keith turns and gives him a watery smile, and flatlines when it widens. He doesn't know how he looks: probably like a mess, hopefully not like a love-struck fool.

He tries to avoid looking at Keith during the rest of the ceremony, and instead concentrates on the faces of the happy couple. Romelle squishes his hand harder and he listens to Hunk's gentle sniffs as he cries.

They say their vows and Lance feels his face wet with tears, and then they kiss and the whole venue erupts in cheers.

\------------------------------------------------

Lance prays to whichever deity or celestial being he got his ability from that he doesn’t have to work tonight. He knows it’s delusional to ask for something like that; he’s at a wedding, after all. And the universe doesn’t know the meaning of holidays, apparently.

He mingles during the reception, before dinner is actually served. Adam and Shiro had gone all out: the venue was extremely out of what Lance would have as a budget if this were his wedding, and so seemed to be the catering service. He’s talking to Nyma and Matt about his senior year, and what he plans to do next when everyone is asked to go back to their tables.  
He sits in between Hunk and Pidge and watches as Keith reluctantly takes his glass and clinks it with his fork to call the attendees’ attention. If you ask Lance, he looks uncomfortable. Or maybe terrified?

Keith takes the microphone the wedding planner is offering him. “Uhm, hello? Can everybody hear me?”

Conversations stop as everyone turns to look at Keith. The room is silent and Keith tries to shake off his nerves by taking in a deep breath.

“Hi. Uh, my name’s Keith and I’m Shiro’s brother and best man.”

“So, I’m not very good at this kind of thing, but my friend Lance said that if I was going to give a best man speech, I couldn’t ask for help, ‘cause it needs to” and he air quotes “come from your heart.” The guests chuckle and Lance sends Keith finger-guns. “So if this turns out to be embarrassing, sorry in advance.” He pauses and takes a deep breath “I never really believed in love.”

“I used to watch romcoms as a kid and wonder how anyone could ever look at that and believe it could be real. It all always looked and felt fake to me, so I quickly decided that I didn’t like them and that romance was unnecessary. Yet a few years back, I witnessed the craziest thing happen. Having known Shiro for my entire life, I knew he was as much as a skeptic about love at first sight as I was. So, that day, and please don’t murder me in my sleep for telling everyone this.” 

And Shiro looks positively horrified. 

“Shiro mentioned that there was a guy in his class he was hoping to see at the party we were going to later that night. At the time, I didn’t know he was talking about Adam, but when we arrived at the place with foods and drinks, we stumbled upon him. Shiro called out to Adam and asked him if he was coming; Adam told him he wasn’t sure. Shiro looked at him, and told him he should.”

“That night and the next day I made fun of him non-stop, though the truth is I had never seen Shiro look at anyone the way he looked at Adam when he asked him to go to that party. It was truly disconcerting, really.” He turns to look at both Shiro and Adam then smiles. “Shiro, you’ve always been there for me and you taught me lot of things. Adam, you’ve done so much for me without realizing it and for that I’m so grateful. The two of you… well, you taught me a lot about love; which is probably better than learning it from movies, you know?”

Shiro is tearing up. Keith’s voice cracks a bit as he continues. “You two have showed me that love can be cheesy and romantic and disgustingly sweet and also difficult, hard... painful. Still, above all, you’ve showed me love is strong. If you love hard enough, everything else is insignificant in comparison. You’ve had your hardships, yet you always come out stronger. I-I think everyone aspires to find something like that. And I’m so glad you guys did, ‘cause you deserve it. I love you guys.”

Both Shiro and Adam are crying, and Lance’s cheeks feel suspiciously wet; Not that he’d ever admit that to Keith.

“To the newlyweds!” Keith raises his glass in a toast and everyone follows along.

\------------------------------------------------

Lance is grateful he was able to have dinner in peace. Shiro and Adam have had their first dance and now everyone is on the dancefloor partying to pop music that only Adam could have chosen, but no one seems to care much since there’s an open bar.

Keith had come over to their table earlier to say hi, if only to stay for a little while. Now, he slides up next to Lance while ordering a margarita.

“So, did you really like my speech?” He asks with rosy cheeks, to which Lance can tell he’s already been drinking. Lance had congratulated him on it earlier, so the question confuses him.

“Of course I did. It was really heartfelt. You made Shiro cry.”

“Only Shiro?”

“And half the room.”

Keith laughs and leans on the counter while Lance takes his drink. “Did you cry?”

“Pffft, of course not. I was too offended you don’t like romcoms to be able to cry.” Lance smirks when Keith chuckles. He loves that sound an unhealthy amount.

“I forgot I was talking to you.”

A beat passes.

“Actually, Lance, there’s something I want to talk to you about-”

And Lance wants nothing more than staying there and talking to Keith, but suddenly he starts to feel the pull, the call, and god fucking dammit it’s strong. It’s demanding Lance leaves right now, probably because there just a tiny window of time for Lance to shoot, and it feels urgent.

“Uh, can we do that, later? I really need to go to the bathroom!” Lance says as he slips out of his stool and begins walking away. He’s not able to go very far, as Keith promptly grabs his arm to stop him.

“You’re always leaving out of nowhere.” It’s a statement, yet it sounds like a question demanding answers.

“Dude, I just gotta go to the bathroom. We’ll talk when I come back.”

Lance slips out of Keith’s grip and starts moving towards wherever the pull takes him.  
He moves through the crowd and maybe bumps into too many people. Hopefully, he won’t have to shoot in the middle of the dance floor; he wouldn’t want to accidentally shoot the wrong person.

It leads him out of the dancefloor, luckily, and through the tables towards the garden adjacent to the hall where the party is taking place. Scattered around the garden are a bunch of outdoor couches, where people are sitting, having a smoke or just chatting, and dimly illuminating the place are fairy lights and the moon; Lance tries to walk around without calling anyone’s attention, and when he’s sure no one is looking at him he ducks behind one of the many bushes he can find, where it’s darker. 

He peaks and tries to find whichever soul is about to get lucky.

A girl has just entered the yard with a drink in hand. She looks around, probably looking for a familiar face, and when she doesn’t find any she sighs and goes to sit in one of the only free couches left.

Lance has a feeling this has to do with her, but he’s still not sure. He needs to get closer.

The closest he can get to her is actually dangerously close: there aren’t many big bushes or trees to hide behind near where the girl is sitting, so his only other option is the couch literally opposite to her. If his disguise comes off and someone spots him, he toast: as in, someone is going to think he’s a creep. Probably, the very same girl he’s about to shoot.

He materializes his bow and his disguise is on. He moves swiftly, making the least sound possible as not to blow his cover. He takes advantage of the drunk screeching of a group of people near the entrance to sprint and duck behind the couch.

He props his bow over the armrest and focuses on his wrist. It has stopped pulling him in any direction, so he guesses he’s right about this girl. The sting isn’t as urgent anymore, so it’s possible that Lance will have to wait for a while. He hopes Keith won’t get too mad at him.

The girl is on her phone, and she looks bored as hell. She looks over once in a while, as if she was waiting, or looking for someone.There’s two waiters going around the groups of people offering glasses of champagne.

Her phone seems to have run out of battery, and she throws it on the other side of the couch as she groans in frustration. A waitress starts making her way towards the girl and suddenly Lance’s wrist is aflame.

“Small time window” Lance mutters to himself, having apparently proven his initial theory. For all he knows, the waitress may not even spend more than two seconds staring at this girl, and that’s all the time he has.

The waitress approaches the girl and asks, “Would you like a glass of champagne, miss?” Lance tenses the string in his bow.

The girl however, doesn’t bother to look up; she has her head resting in her hands, and she bends over her knees to stare at her feet. “I guess one more wouldn’t be too bad.” And as she turns around and reaches out for the glass she’s being offered, Lance lets go of the arrow, and it flies through the air right into the waitress’s heart. And he sees it immediately, how something changes in her eyes.

But Lance quickly realizes something’s wrong: his wrist is still burning.

His mom had told him it might happen someday, that he would have to shoot not one, but two people. It’s fairly uncommon, and his mom had never had the chance. It’s considered highly honourable to have the chance to do so, or so he’s been told. He hasn’t met many other cupids aside from his mom.

The thing is, his disguise is already off. The waitress is about to leave. He has to make the shot, now or never, yet how, how does he manage to make the girl look at the waitress again?

He takes a pebble from the ground and throws it in the girls’ direction in a panic. He’s ducked behind the couch, and he crawls towards the other end of it with the intention of not getting caught.

“Ho- What was that?” Asks the girl, surprise clear in her voice.

And he drops in the ground and aims blindlessly, praying it was the right moment.

It was. He hits her right in her chest while she’s looking up to the waitress, probably looking for an explanation; instead, she’s left with her mouth is hanging open as she seems to have been rendered speechless.

Lance’s bow dematerialized and he plops down in the ground.

“Ah, that tray looks heavy! Let me help you with it!” He hears, while he tries to calm his wild heartbeat.

“Oh, please don’t worry- Oh my God! I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to- Let me help you clean that up!”

Lance can only guess what’s happening, but it’s pretty clear the waitress has spilled champagne on the girl. He quietly chuckles while he listens to those two disasters try to out-nice each other. The waitress ends up winning, as she convinces the girl to come back with her to the kitchen to help her clean her dress.

He knows he should have left, although, if he had they would have already seen him. So he waits until he’s fairly sure they have left to come out of his hiding spot.

“Lance?” A familiar voice asks.

Lance turns. Keith is standing a few meters behind him, half hidden by a bush, wide eyed and shocked.

And Lance is doomed.

\------------------------------------------------

Somehow, Lance has managed to stand up, grab Keith by the elbow and pull him the furthest into the garden he could.

“I’m not a creep.” He says when they stop near an old fountain that seems to have been forgotten by the landscapers.

Keith’s eyes are still as wide “I wasn’t thinking that.”

Lance nods. “Good.” Or is it? Because that means Keith has seen more than what he was supposed to.

“I- I-” Keith fumbles with his words until he decides on, “Lance, what the fuck?”

Lance winces “I can explain?”

“Please do.”

He sighs, and takes Keith’s wrist in his hand, pulling him towards the fountain. The two take a seat on the ledge.

“I, uh- I have a special ability.” Lance says and tries to find Keith’s eyes, only to make sure his best friend doesn’t think he’s insane. He hopes he doesn’t.

“I can see that.” Keith is staring right back at him, and Lance has never seen him in such a state of shock.

“How much did you actually see?” Lance asks, ‘cause maybe if he knows, he might be able to actually start explaining.

“You started going in the opposite direction of the restrooms.”

“Ah.” Lance says. He feels like an idiot.

“I thought you were mad at me for some reason, so I followed you out. I lost you after you came in here and I had been looking around for you when I saw you- I saw you shooting an arrow? I saw you with a bow, and an arrow, and you shot that girl and I- Did that really happen?” Keith looks a little bewildered and Lance doesn’t blame him.

“It did.” He confirms.

“But she’s not hurt? The arrow disappeared midway-”

“OH, so that what happens!” Lance exclaims.

“Lance-”

“Sorry, I just always wondered how someone else would see it. I can see everything ‘cause I’m holding the bow, but you never really know how it looks to outsiders- Not that I should know!!”

“Lance-”

“Because, actually, you should have never seen that.”

“Lance.” Keith interrupts, annoyance seeping into his tone.

Lance winces. “Sorry. I’m panicking a bit.”

Keith sighs. “Yeah, me too, but I think I’d feel better if you explain what the fuck just happened.”

And there’s just no simple way to explain this, so Lance goes to the point. “I’m a cupid.”

A beat passes.

“Im sorry, what?”

“I’m a cupid.” Lance repeats “You know, a love spirit, shoots arrows, makes people fall in love, yada-yada?”

“Yeah, no I got that.” Keith says. He looks like he’s hardly breathing. “I mean, just, what?”

“Uh, I don’t know what to say, man.” And he really doesn’t. How does he explain something like this?

Suddenly, Keith bursts out laughing and the situation is so overwhelming, so ridiculous, all he can do is follow along.

Keith ends up hugging his knees and resting his head between them, silently chuckling as he tries to calm down. 

Lance takes a deep breath and looks up to the moon. God, how did he ever get in this situation?

“I think I’m sober now.” Keith says as he turns and rests his cheek on a knee, looking up to Lance.

“Are you sure? ‘Cause you were reaaally tipsy earlier.” Lance prods, and Keith giggles.

“Well, I needed a bit more confidence, but I think I went overboard.”

Lance frowns. More confidence for what? He doesn’t ask though. Keith must have a million questions for him and he doesn’t want to leave any loose ends.

“So, a cupid, huh?” He asks, and it sounds unsure, like he’s waiting for Lance to finally tell him it was all a prank.

“I don’t know why you refuse to believe me, Mr. Aliens Are Real.” Lance teases.

“First of all, aliens ARE real. And I do believe you, I think. I’m just... confused.” And he sounds earnerst. Lance can think of only one way to start explaining, so he stands up and clears his throat, but not before looking around to make sure they are alone. Keith follows Lance with his gaze as he does this, and his eyes become comically large as Lance materializes his bow.

“...Holy shit.” He murmurs.

“This is my bow. It used to be my mom’s, but she gave it to me when I turned fifteen. I’ve been a cupid ever since.” Lance begins, and when he notices Keith will probably not be able to say a word for a while, he continues.

“It’s a tradition to do so. There’s only ever one cupid per generation and I won the genetic lottery. There quite a few of us around the world, but I don’t know anyone else besides my mom that is. They knew I was the new cupid cause I was born with this birthmark.” Lance walks up to Keith and extends his left arm.

Keith grabs Lance’s wrist tenderly and inspects the mark resembling a rose. When his thumb brushes over it, the mark feels like it has suddenly caught on fire, and it sends shivers up Lance’s arm.

“You’re glowing.” Keith states, and when he looks up and catches Lance’s gaze with his own, the cupid suddenly feels entranced, like Keith’s eyes are drilling holes into his soul just with their intensity and all he can do is watch as he does it.

“Oh, yeah. I do that.” Unintelligently replies Lance.

Keith has never looked at him like he’s doing now. It is seriously doing things to Lance’s heart that he does not know how to deal with. “How?” Keith asks, like a curious child.

“Usually, when I’m called, this bow would make me invisible. I can make it come and go at my own will, but it only disguises me when I have to shoot. It only works up until I make my first shot. I, uh- when you saw me, that was me shooting for a second time. When I haven’t been called and I summon it, I- I glow. I don’t know why, though.”

“Called?” Keith inquires, confusion clear in his tone.

“My wrist.” Explains Lance. “It’s like it’s telling me where to go and who to shoot.”

Keith nods, as if he understood, but Lance is not so sure he does. “Why did you have to shoot a second time?”

The question disconcerts him a bit, since he didn’t think that was what Keith would ask next. “What?”

“Did you miss your shot the first time?” And Keith isn’t teasing, he’s just genuinely curious.

But Lance is Lance and his skills will not be doubted. “For your information,” he raises his eyebrows, “I’m an excellent shot, thank you very much. I’m the best sharpshooter this world has ever seen.”

“I forgot who I was talking to.” Keith chuckles, the little smile he wears makes Lance’s heart jump around his ribcage. “So, what happened then, _sharpshooter _?”__

____

“I had to shoot both girls. It doesn’t happen often.”

____

Keith still hasn’t let go of his wrist, and he gently pulls Lance closer. Lance sighs and dematerializes his bow as he sits back down next to Keith, who still doesn’t let go of his wrist.

____

He keeps mindlessly caressing his mark, and although it doesn’t make Lance shiver anymore, it burns, and pulses. Lance is suddenly hit with the realization this is the most intimate situation he’s ever had with Keith, or anyone else for that matter; now that there are no secrets left, he feels vulnerable, like he’s about to rip his heart out of his chest and hand it to Keith. It’s scary, but Lance thinks he might be able to take that leap of faith.

____

“It’s funny” he says, and Keith’s eyes leave his wrist to find Lance’s. “Earlier, you told everyone what happened after I shot Shiro, but you didn’t know it.”

____

“You shot Shiro?” Keith asks and he’s so surprised it makes Lance giggle.

____

“Yeah. I was there when it happened. I didn’t stay long enough to hear him ask Adam to the party, so thank you for that bit of information. I’m always left wondering what happens next.”

____

Keith looks confused, surprised, scared. “How does it work, then?”

____

And Lance knows exactly what Keith fears. He tells him so. “They are actually in love, don’t worry. The effect of the arrow only lasts a little while. What happened after that was completely up to them. If they got married, it wasn’t because of me.”

____

Keith considers Lance answer in silence, his thumb making little patterns along Lance’s skin. He’s not even sure if Keith has noticed he’s doing it.

____

“Does it always have to happen?”

____

“What do you mean?”

____

“Are cupids always... involved? In making people have crushes or fall in love, I mean.” He looks a bit concerned, like suddenly he’s worried no one actually has free will, like love is suddenly not real.

____

“No, it’s not necessary.” Lance assures him. “For whatever reason, whoever or whatever gave me this ability sometimes needs... help. I like to think there’s a bigger picture I’m not seeing, that somehow that… whatever is nudging us to go here or there because it starts a domino effect. But everyone makes decisions for themselves. I’ve shot so many people that have broken up, or not worked out.”

____

“And people fall in and out of love all the time without anyone’s nudging. It’s just a few people around the world that actually get a cupid’s arrow.”

____

Keith looks away and his shoulders relax. Lance can’t even imagine how confusing all of this might be to Keith.

____

“Have you shot me?” Keith’s fingers stop moving, and they press gently against Lance’s mark.

____

“Nope. For a second I thought it was you I was going to have to shoot back when I shot Shiro, but luckily it wasn’t.”

____

Keith grimaces. “Ew.” And Lance understands that if it had been Keith, then it would have been Adam he’d shot him for.

____

He grimaces too. “Indeed.”

____

But then, Keith frowns, and turns, and asks, “Wait, luckily?”

____

And Lance knows he’s said too much, but he can’t take it back now. “Yeah.”

____

Keith doesn’t respond. He looks away, maybe trying to soak in everything Lance has told him tonight. It’s way darker here than it is in the rest of the garden, but the moon is full and bright, and it casts shadows over Keith features.

____

Lance gets momentarily lost, but snaps out of it when Keith asks, “Can you tell if I’ve been shot by any other cupid, then?”

____

“If you were, I would know. It leaves a mark. But no, you haven’t.” 

____

Keith turns to look at him and Lance was about to explain something else, yet nothing leaves his mouth. He’s rendered speechless as Keith seems to be searching his face for something; what, he doesn’t know.

____

All he knows is his heart wants to jump out of his chest, and fuck it, let him lay it all bare.

____

“I like you.” Lance, must have said, he’s not sure. Keith, however, confirms his suspicions when he gasps, surprised.

____

“What?”

____

And Lance thought explaining he was a cupid had been difficult, but this is ten times worse: how does he make Keith understand how much he likes him? How much he likes to be around him, and how he misses him when he’s not? How he cannot think of a future where Keith’s not around?

____

“I thought I might as well tell you now.” He looks away, towards the sky. “It’s okay if you don’t like me back, though. But I needed to tell you.”

____

Lance feels calm watching the moon. He would like nothing more than for Keith to feel the same way about him, but he’s accepted the reality that he most likely doesn’t. For once, he’s opened himself up completely to someone, and he feels weirdly calm about it; maybe because he trusts Keith. He’d trust him with his life, and he trusts that even while rejecting him, Keith would never truly leave his life. They care about each other too much for that-

____

“Hold on, WHAT?!” 

____

Lance turns to look at Keith, who abruptly stands up and looks at Lance with confusion.

____

Lance frowns. “Are you alright?”

____

“No!” Keith replies hysterical. “No, I’m not alright! I just found out you’re a cupid! That cupids exist! That there’s people- people out there, walking around with an invisible bow shooting other people because their wrist tells them to do so!”

____

Lance grimaces and opens his mouth to apologise, but he’s cut when Keith continues.

____

“And now- now you’re telling me you like me? And that it’s okay if I don’t- Lance, are you blind?!”

____

“I-I-” he stutters, confused.

____

“I like you too!” Keith exclaims and Lance is lost for words.

____

“You do?” he manages. It comes out way softer that he intended, but he doesn’t feel in control of anything right now, least of all his voice.

____

When Keith replies, he almost sounds offended. “Yeah!” 

____

Keith plops back down next to Lance and sighs. “That was I was trying to tell you earlier.” He looks up at him and holds his gaze. “I like you. Romantically.”

____

Lance was ready for rejection, but not… this.

____

“Ah” He nods, like any of this is making any sense.

____

If there were any mind reader near them - and Lance doesn’t discard the possibility that there might be; after all, he is a cupid, _who knows _what else is out there- and they were to intrude Lance’s thoughts, they would hear something along the lines of unholy screeching and chants of _what the fuck, what’s going on, and holy shit he LIKES ME? _____

_____ _

____

_____ _

They remain silent while they consider the implications of both of their confessions.

_____ _

____

_____ _

“I might have to sleep for three days straight after this” Keith says after a while, and Lance wholeheartedly agrees; he did not expect to confess to Keith tonight, or ever for that matter, least of all telling him he’s a cupid, and moreover, for Keith to confess to him too.

_____ _

____

_____ _

Tonight has been an emotional rollercoaster, no doubt.

_____ _

____

_____ _

“Sooo…” Lance starts, cause he might as well explode if he doesn’t talk right now. “We like each other?”

_____ _

____

_____ _

“Well, I like you.” Keith confirms, and Lance feels like his heart is on fire.

_____ _

____

_____ _

“And I like you.” Lance lets his face fall into his hands and he starts laughing. “We sound like fifth graders.”

_____ _

____

_____ _

Keith huffs a laugh. “Yeah, we do.”

_____ _

____

_____ _

He’s overfilled with a warm sensation. 

_____ _

____

_____ _

“So, you won’t get mad if I ask you out to dinner next Friday?” Keith asks, and Lance doesn’t know where that confident smirk came from, given that Keith had been freaking out only a few minutes ago.

_____ _

____

_____ _

A tiny voice is the back of his mind tells him all the awful things he fears: _you’re gonna fuck up, what if he doesn’t work out, what if you lose him as friend. ___

_______ _ _ _

____

_______ _ _ _

Lance tells that voice to _shut the fuck up. _“Only if we don’t go out to a restaurant or something like that. I don’t want to have to leave in the middle of our date” He says as he flashes his wrist.__

_________ _ _ _ _ _

____

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Keith laughs “You’ve got yourself a deal.”

_________ _ _ _ _ _

____

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Because it doesn’t matter whatever that voice is telling him, Lance wants to try; he wants to trust his heart for once, he wants to risk it all, and there’s a possibility this won’t work out, but Lance wants to trust it will.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

____

_________ _ _ _ _ _

He wants to trust Keith. He wants to trust in _them. ___

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

They stay a little longer out there, talking about them: Lance teases Keith about wanting to confess at the wedding, and Keith bites back by pointing out that’s exactly what Lance did. Lance tells Keith more about being a love spirit, and Keith listens earnestly.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

They are told they have missed Shiro and Adam cutting the cake when they come back to the party; Pidge looks at them like she knows what’s happened, but Lance knows she could actually never guessed what went on while they were missing.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____

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They dance with their friends until their feet hurt and farewell the newlyweds when they’re leaving for their honeymoon.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____

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Lance offers to give Keith a ride home, and before getting off the car, Keith gives Lance a peck, a sweet chaste kiss that leaves Lance’s face feeling all kinds of hot.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____

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When Lance finally plops down in his mattress, his insides feel all soft and mushy, and although he’s very tired, that happy feeling that fills him up doesn’t let him sleep for quite a while.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____

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**Author's Note:**

> pleaaase leave kudos and comments if u liked it, its very appreciated!
> 
> also yes the couple was catradora hdksjfhaksjd
> 
> but now, who was the waitress and who was the dumbass who spilled the champagne on her?? hehe


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